Topic: engine runs on 3 cylinders on cold start

[Joey88RUNR]

I bought my headgasket kit at the dealer, think i paid like 160 ish, It came with All the gaskets under that hood,
yea i had my head completly rebuilt, pressure tested it and resurfaced and they refaced the valves think that was like 130ish

[-Matt- [OP]]

wow 130 for a rebuilt head, you scored on that one

[Joey88RUNR]

yup, they are a pretty well known place here in fresno/clovis , dave hiatt machine shop, do really good work

[Travis H]

dang this thread has my thinking my headgasket is bad too, mine is a 1984 22r, starts up perfect in the morning then runs on 3 cly until i give it some gas then runs fine. i need to check and see if i have bubbles in the radiator. oh well i already found metal in the oil maybe i should start looking for a new motor, maybe 22re swap.

[-Matt- [OP]]

so i was snooping around today since i was installing my arb compressor and i noticed another thing that confirms its my head gasket. i have a slight amount of coolant seeping out..cant tell whether its coming out where the head bolts to the block or where the exhaust manifold attaches to the head. either way its blown whether its internal or external. i also have slight bubbling in my radiator, its been there for a while and iv know of the signs of a blown head gasket, but mine is so slight i thought it was just from the water pump turning up the water. but like i said its not like there's major bubbles its almost like its more or a slight foam.

-Joey how long did it take for yours to get really bad, im trying to get a guestimation on how much longer i can go couse i dont have any money for a head gasket right now.  Im thinking it will be a few weekends before i can get one.

[Joey88RUNR]

its hard to say, i bet i bought mine blown, it passed smog blown, but probably got worse as time went on,, i had that same external seapage under the exhaust, yea man hard to say, the day i got the death cloud i baby'd it to work scared it was gonna blow,im a tech at a dealer so i confirmed it at lunch, then it sat a few days, id say drive it, when it happens it happens you will now when it happens

[93tonkatoy]

Becoming good friends with Stop-Leak, I was able to drive mine for almost 2 years before I finally HAD to put a new gasket in. The HG was blown when I purchased the truck, so I do not know how long the gasket had been bad before I got it. If you use stop-leak, make sure you do not let the radiator core run dry!!! this is what causes the most problems with stop-leak clogging radiators. The stop-leak cures with contact with air, and air trapped in the radiator will cause it to cure there. One big problem with running the engine like this is that the thermostat can "catch" the combustion gasses that push into the water jacket, causing coolant to be ejected from the cap as the pressure builds up, and cause the engine to overheat. You CAN remove the t-stat, but your gas mileage will drop severely (engine will run WAY rich, trying to warm up). When accelerating, larger amounts of combustion gasses will be forced into the water jacket, causing more coolant and bubbles to be released by the cap. With the t-stat removed, the bubbles will collect in the top of the radiator, and be the first thing released as the pressure in the coolant system builds up.

I would advise replacing the HG ASAP, but in a pinch, you should be able to nurse it along for a while.

[-Matt- [OP]]

Becoming good friends with Stop-Leak, I was able to drive mine for almost 2 years before I finally HAD to put a new gasket in. The HG was blown when I purchased the truck, so I do not know how long the gasket had been bad before I got it. If you use stop-leak, make sure you do not let the radiator core run dry!!! this is what causes the most problems with stop-leak clogging radiators. The stop-leak cures with contact with air, and air trapped in the radiator will cause it to cure there. One big problem with running the engine like this is that the thermostat can "catch" the combustion gasses that push into the water jacket, causing coolant to be ejected from the cap as the pressure builds up, and cause the engine to overheat. You CAN remove the t-stat, but your gas mileage will drop severely (engine will run WAY rich, trying to warm up). When accelerating, larger amounts of combustion gasses will be forced into the water jacket, causing more coolant and bubbles to be released by the cap. With the t-stat removed, the bubbles will collect in the top of the radiator, and be the first thing released as the pressure in the coolant system builds up.

I would advise replacing the HG ASAP, but in a pinch, you should be able to nurse it along for a while.

thats good to know thanks, and as far as any leak stopper for a cooling system...iv never put that in my truck unless i was about to die in the middle of the desert.

[-Matt- [OP]]

just to follow up for information, finished putting the new head gasket in and problem fixed, it runs great

[unclejpl4x4]

sweet    thx for the follow up